American Book Company Building

Topped with a visually-distinctive tower, the American Book Company Building is prominently sited on the city's Near South Side. The handsome five-story brick industrial building was built in 1912 as the Midwest offices, warehouse and distribution center of the American Book Company, a nationally-prominent New York textbook publisher. The American Book Company Building exemplifies the importance of the publishing industry to the economic history of Chicago. The building features finely-crafted, classically-influenced details in brick, limestone, and terra cotta. The interior includes a handsome Arts and Crafts style lobby. Its architect, Nelson Max Dunning, was a prolific Chicago architect during the 1920s, designing, among other buildings, a number of institutional buildings including the Lakeshore Athletic Club.